Brass Scrapping Hacks - Scrap Metal For Beginners - Tips And Tricks

[@KaiserFrazer67]

A SERIOUS note on scrapping brass: You may want to consider the value of the item you want to scrap out as a collector or restoration piece FIRST. You may be able to get MUCH more money for an item due to what it is than what a scrapyard will give you for it. Antique cabinet hardware, especially locks, drawer handles and handle plates, hinges, etc. will be worth much more to a furniture restorer than a scrapyard. Antique brass padlocks are always worth more than scrap value, even without the key. Even later brass padlocks (up to the mid-1960s) are desirable with at least one working key, still much more than a scrapyard will give you. Also consider antique and vintage lighting fixtures, antique door hardware (especially if it has an ornate pattern), and other antique items. These things are in demand by restorers. If It looks like an antique item with some considerable value, and if it isn't damaged or horribly corroded, consider trying to sell it on eBay first before scrapping it out; chances are VERY good that you WILL get much more money for the item.

[@sorenrelictus8106]

Starting out with scrapping and was happy to read your comment mentioning this. I’m learning how to do architectural salvage and a LOT of old house groups on social media are searching for these pieces and will gladly pay to save them from the scrapyard or landfill.

[@vahjra]

I'm just getting started in scrapping and my biggest hurdle is deciding what metal a thing is. These videos really help! Thanks for the entertaining educating.

[@tomkelly8827]

I am not really a scrapper, I am a carpenter but if I am not mistaken, hinges are brass as well and they have some weight to them. Check the dumpsters of door and window installers and you will find lots of these metals there. I also never use the tiny brass screws that come with hinges because they are always, always always about 1/3 the length they ought to be. Antique hardware in good condition could also be sold for much much more than scrap to antique dealers or restoration carpenters

[@comennish9994]

Nowadays it's made from steel but they do hold weight

[@micahferrin1779]

Awesome suggestion!

[@DracironSmith]

@@comennish9994 Door hinges are usually steel nowadays, sometimes stainless, but furniture hinges are usually brass still. Same with many of the knobs.

[@camberup9176]

Try refurbishing and selling them if they're not too worn.

[@dizzygardener562]

I see lots of older brass hinges on eBay selling for upwards of C$18/pair.

[@jackfrost1031]

Brass is my standby. I found an industrial group that went through brass pump heads regularly. It was a good source for years.

[@thubprint]

Nice! I really love brass. Big chunks of the stuff come from all sorts of things. Shame your supply dried up but sounds good while it lasted!

[@davekimbriel3478]

Thanks for telling me " If your gonna bail, bail early" great advice!

[@thubprint]

I don’t remember where I heard that, probably a really corny show or something, but it’s one of my favourite pieces of life advice!

[@davekimbriel3478]

Yeah that's deep actually!

[@MrBmxbrawler]

@@thubprint cause once your in too deep, it's just depressing.

[@valentin5403]

The alternative saying is... Cut your losses !

[@SuitAndTieGuy88]

Omg I just commented the same thing 😆 🤣 😂

[@TheJbauer76]

Scrapper for over 35 years; always good to see others do it.

[@gravitybear]

I enjoy your explanations as it gives me a comparison to what I'm doing already. I'm a mostly casual scrapper that enjoys the micro-scrapping, even if it doesn't really pay.

[@olajenkins3303]

I'm 86 years old, that's what I'm doing but learning from you, I know I need more little tools,

[@worldview730]

Very good, smart, & instructional video right down to the minor nuances & details. If all video's were like this we would only need yours. 👍👍👍👍

[@Handcraftedrock]

I also use a car jack a lot to quickly break things apart. You just need to find something to press against. Electric motor casing break nicely with a good jack.

[@KarmaHoax]

Great stuff Thub. Brass and copper are my main money maker. I clean as I watch Netflix or KZbin. Builds up fast!

[@mollynakamori]

I have never scrapped a thing, but have a big old bucket of sprinkler and irrigation parts. You have sparked my interest in selling that stuff. Thanks, Thub!

[@ScoutsIX3]

Thanks for this great series, just recently made my first run to the scrap yard!

[@thubprint]

ScoutsIX3 nice work! Hope you had fun and made money!

[@thomasgallagher1370]

Use a vice and a peir of chanel lock, to pull the brass bits from plug ends. You will also find copper wires in the ends.

[@lautonsutley3760]

Love the beginner vids. There just are not enough on KZbin explaining the nuisances of each Metal.

[@thubprint]

Lauton Sutley that’s what I was thinking!

[@colleen345]

I like being called a “Panda”. You have taught me a ton about scrapping. As for my speed , so slow because I’ve never used tools before. let’s just say i cannot just whack a light ballast or transformer a few times to set the copper free. But I’m enjoying you, one of my favorites! Scrapin’ Grandmumm Love to buy my children and grandchildren things they need/want. So I’ve got to speed it up!

[@thubprint]

I honk the speed comes with practice, as well as knowing what parts aren’t worth fiddling with 😊 Very grateful to be on your favourites list, and thank you for saying hello!

[@raymorgan5767]

yup, thats me all right! brass is everywhere!

[@YOUCANDOIT-uw5qq]

Hi amigo from Houston Texas thank you for the information keep up the great work 🤙

[@JayJay-mm3rm]

I love scrapping brass i agree..its heavier and when i worked at a nursey home in Maintenance i used to save all the old brass stuff...good pay days

[@aviendhabntbshr]

Thanks for this series! My 10 year old son has been scrapping (easy stuff, no microwaves or anything like that) and he loved the info!

[@thubprint]

Nicole D yeah, microwaves aren’t worth the shock risk generally. A lot of the time they work too, easy to sell them for $15-20

[@chriswade3424]

In Atlanta Ga. Just got my 2 boys into scrapping. It's fun to see eyes light up when they get that $$ !!

[@Leighspring]

Hello, my nephews love your beginner vids. Keep up the great work. Stay safe.

[@ericaland1831]

Nice brass tacks/brass hacks play on words at the start.

[@thubprint]

😜 I was 100% prepared to be the only person who liked it lol

[@logandejoux8051]

I made money scrapping for the first time today. I buy some brass for 3 and sell it to the dealership for 6.20. Keep doing the thing !

[@thubprint]

Just gotta do that a a hundred times and you’ll have some decent grocery money! 😆

[@martyrgraff8498]

Great videos and vibe all around. Just started scrapping. Kind of obsessed already lmao😅

[@peakyparttimers9362]

Mentioned you on my video today. You are top man! Stay safe. I left it better than i found it!😊

[@thubprint]

PEAKY PART TIMERS nice, thanks!

[@OriginalNethead]

Check yard sales and rummage sales etc for unwanted silver plated serving pieces (platters and tea sets etc); lots of that is silver on copper or brass.

[@deadfoot]

I buy lots of "worthless" silver plate at yard sales and auctions for practically nothing. It's usually copper or brass and worth cleaning up for scrap. Also lots of old beaten up light fixtures and chandeliers sell super cheap and are mostly brass.

[@durfkludge]

I just found a massive solid brass lamp in the alley a few days ago. I used my handy bastard file to shave a little chunk off of it and it exposed the most beautiful shiny brass. It was an exciting find!

[@thubprint]

That is exciting!! I’ve found many that are cast aluminium with a finish intended to make them look like brass. Makes me think they used to all be brass but I’ve never found one that actually was. Nice score!

[@SwiftCreationStudio]

I had a falling out with my main scrap yard, the guy disrespected me, so I reminded him I don't scrap to survive and it's not the only stuff I do. I used scrap aluminum wires to make the chainmail I'm wearing in my channel image and I scrap things I can't fix, can't use, or have been around my house too long. I have a collection of brass I've kept for the purpose of casting it for a prop for comic con type stuff and I've had it for years... If I was desperate for cash I wouldn't be essentially hording a "high value" metal :P I was treated as a charity case and then disrespected claiming I was expensive and other crap for work I did for him off site. Told him I dont work on or for crap and exercised my right to take my business elsewhere. Basically, I'll expand Thub's thing about researching the scrap yards in your area to say don't allow scrap yards to believe they are the only show in town, it leads to them thinking you are dependent on them and they can treat you as they please. Your dignity is worth a small price hit, don't let them treat you as less because you do scrap work.

[@chrislatimer8358]

Thub is the scrap king!!

[@micahferrin1779]

I've debated about pulling the brass out of the plugs. Good advice! Thanks!

[@WhatsthePOINT_EDC]

Thanks man. We need some knowledge/advice from someone as experienced as u here in the scrapping community.

[@thubprint]

I’m always happy to be the guy! The funny thing is how we’re all constantly learning, makes me want to remake every one of these vids now that I’ve got a bit more experience haha

[@stevemoore3713]

This guy has LOTS of good videos. I like lots of things that come from Canada- including his videos!

[@zolledz]

Thanks Thub, enjoyed the series. I have watched some of the micro recyclers and they just seem to enjoy the challenge of recycling as much as possible more than the money.

[@thubprint]

zolledz yeah, fair point. Even if it isn’t very profitable, it can be calming to pick apart something into its scrap components

[@Ant-qi8di]

Try putting the plug pins in very hot water to soften the plastic

[@dr.a006]

I do the brass plugs as I get them. Maybe a few at a time if I have a few cords, then it doesn’t seem that bad taking a few seconds, they add up. If I hold the plug with pliers just right, the dull wire cutters in the other hand, I can “roll” out the entire brass piece including the 1” of wire attached to the end and avoid breaking it off and leaving half of it behind. 👍

[@tangibleandroid285]

Just discovered you, I think you're awesome bro. I do much of the same thing down here in South Florida. The only real difference between you and I is that I focus more on the treasure finds and sell those at flea markets and scrap minimally. Also down here bottles and cans and cartons don't make any money maybe cans if you want to do that and have the space. But I mostly adhere to a lot of what you said as far as choosing wisely, about time equaling value on what you choose to tear down. And all that stuff to about hurting wrist sore fingers it's pretty easy to determine what's valuable to yourself but to each one of us we value all these things differently so we do them in different proportions so I think you're doing a great job anyways this is gone on too long. Wish you the best of luck in are uncertain current time / future.

[@markbradley3108]

Hello from Arkansas great videos. Leave it better than what you found it!

[@michaelsbehnke98]

Hold the plug in one hand and wiggle the prong back and forth, on newer plugs they will snap, but on older ones normally they just pull out. Great video though!

[@stevenguevara2184]

Idk why but I am drawn to brass. Just love the stuff

[@Noone-wt5rx]

I always enjoy sitting down watching tv and cleaning every copper wire and brass

[@austindevaney2792]

Your videos really are helpful!! I really appreciate it 🙏 If you find the time i would love to see a video where you takes the most common brass copper aluminum scrap items and make like a list i guess of what items are #1 #2 or clean or dirty bc ive seen videos on copper where they say #1 tubing is bright or newish and has no metels etc then other videos say it can have patina but no metals paint etc and is #1 lol

[@jonathanhege5029]

Hi thub, do you have any newer brass educational videos? Thank you for your time.

[@perryvinson6880]

Thank you your videos always help me through this scraping journey

[@thubprint]

Happy to be here friend! Thanks for saying hi!

[@geofft3214]

Cool! I like these metal scrapping tips videos. Can you do one on lead and batteries. thanks

[@thubprint]

Geoff T sure! I’ll do my best, but I’ll have to take a bit to think of all the details a person might be wondering about. Guess that means cutting one in half!

[@geofft3214]

@@thubprint bro, don't cut batteries - too dangerous. Many different types of batteries. What's worth scrap. thanks

[@sebastianz.3256]

Brass in UK, from scratching plugs, probably worth the effort. Thanks for video

[@johnwayne3904]

Good tips Thub! Happy scrapping!

[@thubprint]

Thanks! Same to you 😊

[@johnwayne3904]

@@thubprint Holy smokes, I'm starstruck! 😄

[@ryantimmins9479]

Nice tips Thub! Gotta love Brass!

[@thubprint]

Ryan Timmins ohhh I sure do lol

[@leroythompson4485]

You are a good scraper the best I know.

[@alexandro4169]

Whoa! I was waiting for this one Thubber! You finally gave it to us! Such an informative video good work

[@Archangel4500000]

For the plug ends my yard takes them as brass breakage- its like $0.12 per pound- not a lot but once you have a bucket or 2 its worth a few bucks and it keeps it out of the landfills. Plus no work required and what the hell you going to do with it otherwise?

[@thubprint]

That’s the right choice my guy!

[@lucymuramatsu4960]

Keep them coming. Stay safe

[@jacktripper4242]

Brass is one of my favourites because brass has mass.

[@thubprint]

Ooo, that’s cute!

[@geofffalbo5900]

My scrap yard has a category called "brass recovery". It targets all plug ends. It is usually 4x the price of scrap steel. Gives more value then having to manually pulling plug ends apart. You should see if your yard accepts this alternative category.

[@thubprint]

I wish mine had that! I’ve asked, it was a tough sell finding someone who would buy the plug ends from me. I had a bucket full of them too.

[@lukestoner1211]

You can drop the plugs into boiling water . It softens the rubber and the pull out fairly easy. Plus you get the bit of #1 copper tail.

[@mcgoo136]

I just run a grinder right up the middle of the faucets nuts and bolts aren’t so bad when you cut them in half and since most of the metals are soft it’s easy. Watch those fingers and a mask isn’t optional like you said those rubbing fittings.

[@fatbaldguy3271]

What about white brass that is not gold inside like plumbing fittings ? My city places will not take it.

[@holliday72889]

Its usually easy to tell if its brass or zinc alloy/plastic is by weight or feel. Brass is heavy and doesn't feel cheap like the chromed plastic/zinc alloy does. Scraping is always the best way to check though

[@thubprint]

Truth! A scrapper has to learn sometime though

[@keithedwards8805]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.

[@ariesmariano4592]

Nice brass

[@thubprint]

😂

[@CreationsVibration]

As i strip electrical wires i take the quick second and pull the brass prongs and let them accumulate in a bucket

[@Leighspring]

Same here.

[@tangibleandroid285]

My mouth, in reality, is just a poor man's vagina.

[@miqdadhussain2316]

What we need in a start to do scraping business?

[@Catharticscrapper]

Thanks for sharing your tips & tricks 😀

[@david.perrip4316]

Nice vid man!

[@Raishikaku]

I wonder if you could use a tumbler to get the forks out. Not sure if you already did video on that but I will look in just a moment, if you haven't yet I'd be interested to see.

[@kathykeith6424]

hi the way i do plugs is by using a old pot and boiling them put in vice and they come out easy a bit time consuming but if you have a big bucket of them it can be worth it

[@kylebeckstrom3867]

I enjoy your channel thanks for your many efforts

[@thubprint]

Thanks so much! I try to be helpful, even if I don’t always manage to haha

[@sendit7777]

Hope this wonderful piece of advice helps for getting plug ends out faster. Smash with a maul hammer on the side of the plastic. They normally fall out. Then pick it up after a few are done.

[@lindalong2297]

Can’t wait to see your experiment.

[@scrappermax9513]

I usually use my vice to tear out the brass in plugs. It’s probably more time consuming but its easier on the wrist. For the year 2019 I melted them all down into two ingots totaling 6 lbs so it won’t yield very much brass

[@Sriraj-m6n]

excellent information

[@rickward3980]

Good information for a beginner

[@nathanwinchell1246]

Hay, recently found your channel and wanted to give you a shout out and say hope you keep up the great content. ✌

[@FilmStains]

Hey thub, i have a question that probably would make a good video for u to cover. What are some good tips for dealing with lead scrap? I know to be wary of touching and breaking in led, but is there certain places to look for it beyond batteries, pipes and spent bullets?

[@thubprint]

Wraith Mark great idea! It’s actually pretty uncommon, I have a buddy who packs his own shells for hunting because he has trouble finding ammo for his antiques and apparently it’s getting really difficult to find scrap lead. I sold him all the stuff I had because the scrapyards won’t sell theirs to you like they used to. I’ll do some research and get on it!

[@zone4garlicfarm]

There's a bait shop near me that buys lead to cast into jigs for deep sea fishing. They're picky about what they buy but they pay double what the scrapyards will give.

[@aberhan]

Often brass fittings have copper pipe soldered into them. Should this copper be heated and removed? Does it effect the overall price of the brass?

[@thubprint]

Depends on your scrapyard, they might want to downgrade it because of the solder but a little extra copper in the brass is definitely not a problem, as brass is mostly copper anyway

[@SuitAndTieGuy88]

That's like the best advice ever! "If your gonna bail, bail early" 😅

[@ramlondager1783]

Your a polite dude I left a like and a comment thank you

[@thubprint]

Thanks for the comment! 😊

[@cherylmartin4050]

How about a shredder are they worth it? Where to get them

[@thubprint]

I mean, if you’ve got a huge operation going! It’ll definitely make it faster, but I’ve never thought about doing it on that level.

[@2evangelina]

Great content!

[@kylebeckstrom3867]

Great videos

[@kimphillips5281]

Put your plugs in a big pot and pore hot water over the plugs bring to the boild then plull the prongs out

[@DavidGS66]

I am good at sinks. On foot, I never carried an angle grinder (more useful for cutting steel welds on transformers) or a file. I used utility knife to cut deep. If yellow underneath, it's brass. Die cast faucets crumble when hammered; however, stainless steel is very tough when hammered. As for the fool's AL, pot metal, it is nonmagetic like brass & Al, but more dense, so just weigh with hand & you can tell difference usually (smaller pot metal is harder to judge). So, like you, I use destructive testing. Lamps & cupboard handles more than faucets almost all look like brass, but I've only ever found 2 brass lamps. You'll need some small Allen keys to take apart many faucets.

[@Guineken420]

Great video

[@frankcioffi5122]

Im first. Holy crap. This awesome! Keep doing the thing

[@thubprint]

Frank Cioffi and you as well sir!

[@Klarschiff]

Clear and fast talking i like it :-)

[@austinkilla_hunter7333]

Thanks man!!!!!! Very informative and entertaining video. Loved it.

[@thubprint]

Just trying to help! 😄

[@thatcanada]

Thub, boil them. Boil the plug ends for about 10 minutes at a rapid boil and they slip out, without breaking, and with little effort; side benefit that the remaining copper wire does too, and can be snipped off. Hope you read comments from older videos...

[@sheilamilano8040]

Great piece of information... much appreciated 🙏

[@eba44]

Hi!! This was great info!

[@silverlicious2086]

Great refresher demo video.

[@thubprint]

Well I was aiming to help people who are brand new, but it’s still entertaining (hopefully) for folks who are familiar with scrap. I was expecting more people to add tips I missed! Maybe brass just isn’t that complicated 😄

[@jeremyestrella253]

Bro I've been looking to your videos and I'm trying to find if you've got to hack in there somewhere if you know any good ways to remove the red coating from the copper inside welders

[@joestalin2375]

Hello from Florida! Curious,how do you find all that wonderful loot, bro you get some stacks!!!!!

[@dw3407]

Love your videos 👍🏾👍🏾

[@joselofarias2088]

Can you put electrical brass and plumbing brass together?

[@wghead]

Good video!

[@thubprint]

Thanks!

[@paparisling]

Good vid man!

[@thubprint]

Thank you!

[@weldingsolutionskck2798]

Good info. Thanks.

[@frankfomkin222]

Don't forget the magnet! A lot of times those bed frames and floorlamps are just plated.

[@vincedibona4687]

Trash cans, too.

[@newfiescrapper2525]

Great video.

[@ajbedenis]

Very helpful

[@thubprint]

Doin my best!